This is my paper mache totem pole. I chose the tiger/cat because it represents someone who has power but is still loving and kind with that power. Some problems I had were 1. the paint smeared 2. the paint washed off somehow and 3. the paper mache was hard to put on it when we were done. I am impressed with the result. 
This is my finished totem pole. I chose the peacock because it represents my sister because she's elegant, the dog for my brother because he is playful, and the cat for me because i'm loving and nice. I had many problems during this. Lots of things broke off, when the clay was hardened I couldn't really do anything to it, and it was hard to hollow out. I'm fairly impressed with the results. I learned that if you don't want something to break off, you have to put it on just right or it will fall off. 
This is my finished totem pole. The peacock represents my sister because she is elegant. The dog represents my brother because he is playful. The wolf represents me because I like to be by myself. The unicorn represents my mom because she is graceful, and the cougar represents my dad because he is the head of the family and he protects us. I am happy with the result and I changed colors a bit. I learned the totem pole colors and designs.
This is my finished non-painted totem pole. The peacock represents my sister because she is elegant, the dog represents my brother because he is playful, and the cat represents me because I am loving and kind. I was impressed with the results. Some problems I had were that things would fall apart, and I learned that you need to get pieces on good.